Mt. Sinai

Just got back from climbing Mount Sinai, definitely one of the most intense and amazing experiences in my entire life. Before I went I was sort of hesitant and tired to do such a long hike so late at night, thinking that climbing this mountain would be like climbing any other mountain. For some reason, not easily explainable, it was completely unlike any hike I've ever done and a hundred times worth it. This post is going to be pretty long, but it's gonna be awesome so keep reading!

After celebrating Olivia's birthday at dinner in this cafe in Dahab (like all cafes in Dahab you just sit on the floor its awesome!), we left for Mt. Sinai from our hotel at midnight. We got there at 1:30 AM, and I had a funny experience on the way at the checkpoints. Since the Luxor and Dahab terrorist bombings in 2005-2006, there is an intense police presence in the Sinai, so on the way to Mt. Sinai we were stopped like 4 times (in the middle of the night!) at checkpoints where police and troops checked peoples' passports. The really interesting and weird thing is that no one cares about foreigners--they are just waved in--the cops are on the lookout for locals, and basically views any Egyptians coming to these "touristy" places with suspicion (reverse of the American experience, where the foreigner is viewed as a threat). Anyways, whenever we got to these checkpoints the driver was like "I have 3 Americans, a British and a Canadian" and the cops wouldn't check our passports. But at 2 of the checkpoints, the police guy outside the van started pointing at me and talking to the driver, calling me "Masri" or Egyptian, and they had a long discussion. It was really funny, and the driver kept laughing, because at every checkpoint they thought I was Egyptian and at first hassled us. At the final checkpoint, the driver actually made joked with the cop (in Arabic), saying something like "this is our American friend who pretends to be Egyptian".

We reached the foot of Mt. Sinai, where there is located the oldest Christian monastery in the world, St. Catherine's, from like 331 AD. Everyone is required to have a Bedouin guide, so this super chill dude named Jamal came with us five and we began the climb of Mt. Sinai at 2 AM!!! There are two ways to get up the mountain: we, like everyone else who does the night climb, took the longer but less steep route, i.e. the camel trail. This area of the world is desolately beautiful and awe-inspiring--there is no vegetation, just forbidding rock and granite on all sides of you, and the sky is completely clear, as you can see thousands of stars and even the arm of the milky way. Climbing the trail at night, looking up the mountain and seeing the snaking trail of twinkling lights that were people's flashlights, was an extremely surreal experience.

Probably the most surreal, and almost creepy, part of the climb was near the beginning, where we were walking the trail through the valley which is dotted heavily with large rocks and boulders. We were walking on this trail when it got narrowed, and there seemed to be more rocks around. However, when you started to focus, you realized that many of the rocks weren't rocks at all, but camels sitting down! It was really weird, we were walking through this desolate area surrounded by hundreds, if not thousands, of camels sitting in the darkness, illuminated only by starlight, who were staring at us while we walked. Adding to the weirdness were that there were all these Bedouin guys sitting on the edge of the trails who you could only see by the light of their cigarettes, who quietly said "you want camel, nice camel ride" when you walked by. It was out of this world...the camel situation also became a hassle as we were climbing higher up the trail, where it became quite steep (and where my oh so fit body began to feel hella tired). Since a lot of people try taking camels to near the top, which makes you just as sore if not more than walking, they would continuously be passing us. However, when the trail was really narrow, these camels didn't care if they were knocking into you, and it sometimes felt as though the camel would push us off the path and the mountain.

Another really cool thing about the ascent were these tiny "teahouses" run by Bedouins that were located about every half-hour or 45 minutes on the trail, although near the top there were a lot more. These tiny huts, made of rock and straw roofs, had one room full of wool blankets where people could rest, and they also sold water and snacks at ridiculously expensive prices. The coolest thing about these teahouses was that while most of the climb (except for the top) you weren't really near the other groups going up, at these teahouses were large crowds of people just mingling and talking at like 3 or 4 in the morning! It felt like those stories of Kathmandu in the 60's, where hippies, backpackers and travelers would meet in these traveler lodges randomly scattered throughout the mountains. Right near the summit of Mt. Sinai, these teahouses also rented mattresses and blankets so you could rest before the sunrise.

The camel trail ended before the summit; we had to climb 700 steps etched into the highest parts of the mountain to reach the top. These steps were really difficult, especially as it was nearing 5 AM! We finally reached the top while it was still dark, and where an ancient church had been erected. Lots of people were up there, and me and 2 of my friends (Alex and Anna) climbed up on this rock that basically hung over the cliffside of Mt. Sinai (about a 2000 foot drop) because it was the highest point and would have the best view of the sunrise. The summit was really awesome, because there were hundreds of people lying down on these rocks waiting for sunrise, and there were a couple very adventurous people who were walking around and climbing up some crazy rocks that were precipitously dangling over the edge.

Our main goal for the trip was to see the sunrise at the summit of Mt. Sinai, and it truly exceeded my expectations. It was seriously one of the most beautiful images I have ever seen. Everyone was so excited when the disc of the sun became visible, and it illuminated the entire mountain and valley in an amazing way. It is easy to see how Moses, or anyone following him for pilgrimage or just visiting, could be moved to holy wonder in this place. I felt like the whole experience was a mix of contradictions: we were extremely tired, but energized for the sunrise; the mountain was devoid of life, but yet so beautiful; there were crowds of people at the top, but pure silence. Basically an experiences that is completely impossible to put into words.

On our way down we took the alternate route, called the Steps of Repentance! This path, comprising of 3,700 steps, was created by one monk as a lifetime penance centuries ago. It was a really beautiful and dramatic descent from the summit, and also quite a bit faster than the camel trail. Apparently some people climb the mountain using this route, which seems to me as ridiculously difficult and terrible for your knees. We finally got down the mountain around 8 AM, which was so disorienting because I had been awake at this point since 10 AM the day before (except for a two hour nap yesterday afternoon). Finally got back to the hotel around 11 AM, and I slept till about 4:30 and now feel great.

Sorry for the incredible length of the post, but I wanted to share with my family and friends this amazing and never-forgettable experience. I really urge anyone who is going to be in this area of the world (and doesn't have knee problems!) to climb Mt. Sinai...it is, in the words of a famous man, "a narniatingly awesome death start domination" experience.